Second, third for Honda power at Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach
Streets of Long BeachRomain Grosjean scores fourth-career NTT INDYCAR SERIES podium. Alex Palou finishes third for Chip Ganassi Racing to give Honda a double podium. Four different Honda-powered teams score top 10 finishes.
Romain Grosjean and Alex Palou both put their Honda-powered INDYCAR machines on the podium at today’s 47th running of the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach.
Though the early stages of the race were dominated by Andretti Autosport’s Colton Herta, the 2021 winner found himself in the third position after the first round of pit stops and unfortunately, later, made contact with the wall to end his race.
Chip Ganassi Racing’s Palou would inherit the lead after jumping both Herta and Josef Newgarden on pit road during the first round of pit stops, and would maintain that position through the second stint. But in the second and final pit stop cycle, Palou would drop behind eventual-winner Newgarden.
For Andretti Autosport #28 driver Romain Grosjean, starting from the sixth position after a crash at the end of Saturday’s qualifying, a combination of tire strategy and gusty on-track passes saw the Formula One veteran move through the field and, eventually, around Palou in the closing laps of the race for second place.
Palou’s Ganassi teammate Scott Dixon, Rahal Letterman Lanigan’s Graham Rahal, Andretti’s Alexander Rossi and Meyer Shank Racing’s Helio Castroneves also notched top 10 finishes today for Honda.
Fast Facts
Honda-powered drivers and teams have won the Grand Prix of Long Beach 15 times in 22 appearances. This includes victories in eight of the last 13 races; and a seven-year victory streak from 1996-2002.
Launched in 1986 as the first Japanese luxury automotive brand, Acura is a leading nameplate that delivers Precision Crafted Performance – a commitment to expressive styling, high performance and innovative engineering, all built on a foundation of quality and reliability. Both Acura and its American Honda parent have their U.S. headquarters in Torrance, California.
Next
The NTT IndyCar Series next heads to scenic Barber Motorsports Park, just outside of Birmingham, Alabama, for the May 1 Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama.
It was a pretty good day out there! It's a bummer we didn't start P2, that would have made my day a lot easier. But, we had the right strategy, good pit stops, and pushed hard. The yellow [caution flag] really brought us back into the game and from there I made a couple of overtakes to get into second. Was just a little bit shy of getting the win today. Next time!
It was a pretty good day out there! It's a bummer we didn't start P2, that would have made my day a lot easier. But, we had the right strategy, good pit stops, and pushed hard. The yellow [caution flag] really brought us back into the game and from there I made a couple of overtakes to get into second. Was just a little bit shy of getting the win today. Next time!
It was an exciting race! Started third, finished third, but a lot of things happened in that race. I think we did an amazing job with strategy on that first [pit] stop. We had to overtake Herta and Newgarden somehow, and we didn't want to be at risk of any yellows, so we pitted early, really went for it and led some laps—that was amazing. But on the second stop, Josef got us there. It was a nice battle on track and another podium for us, so I'm feeling really confident for what's ahead.
It was an exciting race! Started third, finished third, but a lot of things happened in that race. I think we did an amazing job with strategy on that first [pit] stop. We had to overtake Herta and Newgarden somehow, and we didn't want to be at risk of any yellows, so we pitted early, really went for it and led some laps—that was amazing. But on the second stop, Josef got us there. It was a nice battle on track and another podium for us, so I'm feeling really confident for what's ahead.
The weekend started off really well with Colton getting pole. Today, it was a really tight race throughout and very exciting for the fans here at the track. We definitely have pace on street courses. Unfortunately, we just couldn't put it all together for a win, but it was still a good result for Romain and for Alex. Thanks to everyone who came out to watch. It was a great crowd, there was a lot of excitement and we're sorry we couldn't deliver a victory in front of our home crowd!
The weekend started off really well with Colton getting pole. Today, it was a really tight race throughout and very exciting for the fans here at the track. We definitely have pace on street courses. Unfortunately, we just couldn't put it all together for a win, but it was still a good result for Romain and for Alex. Thanks to everyone who came out to watch. It was a great crowd, there was a lot of excitement and we're sorry we couldn't deliver a victory in front of our home crowd!
